Meet the authors contest edition Volume #1

@KiraDeRosier

Hi! My name is Leila. My book, Kingdom of Veiled Bloodlines, came as a runner up in The Creativity Awards' Fantasy Category. At that point in time, I had very few readers and didn't think I'd stand a chance at winning anything, so placing in The Creativity Awards was a much needed boost of encouragement in my abilities as a writer, no matter the number of reads.

 1. What's the best way to handle a bully?

 Bullies like getting a reaction out of you (trust me, I was constantly picked on throughout middle school for my attitude, among other things). The best thing you can do is ignore them, and if that doesn't do anything to get them away, talking to a trusted adult about it should.

2. What is your favorite book?

 That is such a hard question. I honestly can't pick one. Some of my favorites are A Court of Mist and Fury (Sarah J Maas), And I Darken (Kiersten White), Six of Crows (Leigh Bardugo) and an Ember in the Ashes (Sabaa Tahir). Honestly, if it's High Fantasy, chances are I'll love it.

 3. What's your favorite snack?

 I love cheese -- mini babybels, mozzarella, anything's fair game to me.

4. What's a song you enjoy? Who's the artist?

 Mi persona favorita, by Alejandro Sanz and Camila Cabello. Even though I can only understand a bit of Spanish, I teared up the first time I heard it.

 5. What's a good piece of advice for a newcomer?

 Dedication will get you further than motivation in terms of writing. Motivation comes and goes -- routine keeps you going. 

6. How would you celebrate a publishing deal?

 Hm, that's an interesting question. I'd probably go out to dinner with my family and friends.

7. What's your favorite holiday, and why?

 I don't actually celebrate most popular holidays due to cultural differences, but I love Halloween, with all the costumes and candy.

 8. What's your favorite thing about Wattpad?

 It makes interaction with my readers really straight forward, and helps me from there figure out what to change or keep the same in my writing.

9. If you could spend the day with your favorite celebrity, who would it be, and what would you do?

 My favorite celebrity is, without a doubt, Camila Cabello. I feel like we'd probably stay inside and just listen to some music together.

10. What inspired you to write?

 If we're talking in general, it's that I kept coming up with stories that I could never read anywhere and I really wanted to bring those to life. But for my current WIP, I looked out at the ocean, and from there came up with what would be the setting to Kingdom of Veiled Bloodlines.

11. What's your favorite TV show?

 I don't think I actually have a favorite TV show. I like a few different shows (The Umbrella Academy, Jane The Virgin, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, etc), but nothing enough to call it an outright favorite.

request time!

My book, Kingdom of Veiled Bloodlines, follows the story of Zerlinda, a young girl who bargained away her freedom to Hades in exchange of him keeping her younger sister, Adalia, from dying of a grave illness. In exchange of this favor, Zerlinda becomes an assassin in his name -- his own personal handmaiden. But all actions come with consequences, and soon, Zerlinda is cornered with threats of the gallows into becoming an assassin meant to protect The King of Nerissa -- the one man responsible for her father's death. Aside from featuring a dark and deadly twist on seirenes, the book centers around freedom -- who chooses it? Who controls it?